India set to be the world’s largest adopter of AR & VR technologies, says founder of AjnaLens

AjnaLens, a pioneering Extended Reality (XR) startup based in Mumbai, recently launched two immersive reality headsets AjnaXR Pro and AjnaXR SE. The devices launched on August 15 claim to seamlessly merge the virtual and real worlds. These headsets are based on the company’s operating system – Ajna Chakra – which is based on Android. The AjnaXR Pro is priced at Rs 1,15, 499 and the AjnaXR SE comes at Rs 84,999.

Talking about the challenges faced by the company, Raut said that back in 2014 they were not aware of the magnitude of the risks owing to the lack of a supportive ecosystem within the country. However, over the years, the industry witnessed tremendous changes. “I can now say with pride that the industry has undergone a remarkable transformation. During our initial phases, we had to source components from various places, but today, because of the increased availability, procurement has become much smoother,” added Raut. 

The journey

Raut, who studied mechatronics engineering in the UK, says that he is immensely interested in human consciousness and the impact of technology on different aspects of life. In 2014, Raut met his co-founders at an MIT Media Labs event held at IIT Bombay. Following the meeting, the founders decided to work on holographic computers.

After its inception, AjnaLens began working with the Indian defence sector offering solutions for training and simulations of battlefield scenarios. The company also worked with industrial training institutes to assist students with skills such as welding and spray painting with the help of AI and mixed reality devices. 

Ever since its launch, AjnaLens has made some significant strides. The company got the opportunity to showcase its devices at the CES Consumer Electronics Show in Vegas and also won the CES Innovation Award in 2023. The company has designed AR headsets for the Indian Army as well. “ We have successfully positioned ourselves to compete with major players in the market, surpassing them by offering a significantly superior product. We were also able to break the mindset that Indians couldn’t make world-class products,” Raut said. 

During the initial days of its journey, the company was able to reduce the cost of simulators to one-third of the cost. As a result, the company bagged the Graham Bell Innovation Award. It also got recognition from Qualcomm among the top five hardware startups.

Made-in-India devices

AjnaLens is a made-in-India brand. When asked about how the company is fostering the Made in India vision, Raut said that technological growth was happening at an unprecedented pace in India. He believes that the growth is not just limited to large corporations, but small and medium-sized enterprises are seeing similar adoption, making it imperative to harness the make-in-India wave.

According to Raut, with affordable access to 4G and 5G smartphones and the internet, SMEs are becoming globally aware. “As aspirational Indians, we strive for the best in every domain, which includes contributing to vendor development. For instance, companies that once specialised only in basic optics are now evolving into experts in complex optics creation. This transformation has been facilitated by open-minded founders and owners who are interested in exploring next-generation technologies. This not only boosts innovation but also generates both direct and indirect employment,” said Raut. 

According to Raut, AjnaLens aims to contribute to the Made in India initiative and the technological growth of the country by developing world-class products and nurturing local vendors and developers.

XR for education

Both AR and VR can be a great tool for education. Raut illustrated how learning the piano can be an expensive affair, and how VR can come in handy to save both time and cost. These technologies are dynamic and not only help save time and cost but also offer ample flexibility to learners. Ajna Vidya and AjnaXR platforms are aimed at addressing these issues and offer services such as subscription plans and AI-driven learning.